Do you need to Insure your Pet?

A pet is not just a domestic animal for a pet owner, it is a part of the family. Pet owners give love and care to their pets as much as parents would give their children. Therefore just like, we provide insurance cover to our families, we can think about pet insurance too.

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Pet insurance India – Why should you insure your pet?

Owning pets is a growing trend in India today. Moreover, many people have exotic animals and breeds as pets. Such pets are expensive to buy and take care of. It is better to insure them against death or theft so that you are financially secure. It is not easy to get over the loss of the pet but insurance will ensure that you have the financial resources to replace the pet.

Pets live longer thanks to advances in medical treatment and veterinary medicines. At the same time, medical care costs are also rising. An insurance policy that covers medical care will help the pet to stay healthy and also take care of the monetary aspect of medicines and treatments.

Some pets are prone to accidents, they all grow old and some need regular treatments. For example, Labrador dogs need surgical treatments once a while. It is better to have an insurance cover for such pets.

Your pet may bite a third person or attach another person or destroy someone’s property. You might have to pay for the monetary damages incurred. An insurance cover helps you in such matters.

Let’s dive deep into this topic and this post goes into detail about the most commonly asked questions:

What does Pet Insurance mean?

It simply means to take insurance for your pet , so if any emergency will occur towards your pet i.e (injury , health ), you can get it reimbursed by insurance company in the form of claim.

How Much Does Pet Insurance Cost?

It will cost us around 5-6% of sum assured depending on breed and age of the pet.

Yes because medical cost are increasing as the advancement increases day by day.

How much a month is pet insurance?

If your pet is between 8 weeks to 8 years old, you can take insurance

Which is the best pet insurance?

Get a insurance which covers not only health but also covers the third party also, in case your pet bites someone then you can get reimbursement by insurance. And the sum assured of that insurance should not be low as there is no use to pay high premiums in against of low sum assured.

Is there a waiting period for pet insurance?

It varies from company to company, if they find any disease that they are not covering, you will not able to get cover, but yes, again it depends whether the disease is subject matter to permanent or temporary.

Does Pet Insurance increase with age?

Yes as your pet grows older, the premium will increases accordingly, those who have young exotic pets, it is more advisable to take insurance in the young age of that pets.

It may cover vaccination or you can get it customized by company, subject to policy document of the respective company.

What is an annual deductible for pet insurance?

At the time of claim , you only need to bear 20% of the claim amount , the rest would be bear by the company.

What is a lifetime pet insurance policy?

Lifetime cover protect the pet against any critical illness and long term illness. This includes diseases like eczema, arthritis, etc. Policyholder opts for this cover, will receive spa specified amount each year towards the treatment of the pets.

What does accident only pet insurance mean?

As its name itself clarify it is going to cover only accident of the pets if not happened due to pet owner’s negligence , you can claim your pet’s veterinary treatment in the event of any accident.

How soon after getting pet insurance can I claim?

Just like Health Insurance, you have to pay out from your pocket first then you can claim it from the company.

Does any pet insurance cover routine visits?

It depends on the policy terms you have opted for, you just need to go through the policy document or ask policy provider for the same.

Can you get pet insurance after the injury?

It varies from company to company how they deal pre existing injury. But generally, exclusions are treated as either temporary or permanent.

A pet is not just a domestic animal for a pet owner, it is a part of the family. Pet owners give love and care to their pets as much as parents would give their children. Therefore just like, we provide insurance cover to our families, we can think about pet insurance too.

Which are the pet policies available in India?

Pet insurance is not popular in India. There is low awareness about it among people and many insurance companies do not provide it. You can get pet insurance for an amount between Rs. 2,000 and Rs. 50,000 depending on the breed and the insurance company.

Some insurance companies such as Future Generali provides animal insurance as part of the rural insurance schemes.

New India Assurance

New India has a dog insurance scheme that provides coverage to dogs from 8 weeks old to 8 years old against death due to accident or certain illnesses. The company will bear 80% of the claim amount and Insured will bear 20% of the claim amount. You can get more details here.

Major Exclusions

Common Exclusions : As per Cattle Insurance

Specific Exclusions :

Death due to diseases such as Distemper, Rabies, Viral Hepatitis, Leptospirosis, Viral enteritis. These diseases are covered only if the dogs have been successfully vaccinated and a Veterinary Certificate to that effect is produced.

Diseases contracted prior to and within 15 days of commencement of risk.

Transport, show risk, breeding and whelping risk, third party personal injury unless additional premium is paid

Oriental Insurance

Oriental provides an insurance policy for dogs from 8 weeks to 8 years old. Dogs are covered against death due to accidents and illnesses. For an additional premium, dogs are also covered against loss of litter, theft, personal injury or property damage of third person etc. You can click here for more details.

Brief Description: This Policy covers Indigenous, Cross bred or Exotic dogs which are Pets, Watch dogs, Sheep dogs and Hunting dogs and provides Insurance against death due to accident and / or diseases during the period of insurance to the dogs. Age: 8 weeks to 8 years. Insured dogs must be suitably identified by one of the following methods: 1) Tattooing, 2) Nose Print, 3) Coloured photograph, 4) In the case of pups, one more colour photo may be taken at 6 to 8 months age. Normal physical identification marks and breed, sex, age etc. should be clearly described in the Veterinary Certificate and Proposal form. The Policy may be extended as per the following sections and the proposer may choose to cover risk under any section(s) by payment of extra premium: Section 1: Death by accident in transit by air, rail, road and water and show risk, Section 2: Death by accidental poisoning, Section 3: Breeding Risk – a) Death by whelping, b) Loss of litter in case the whole litter dies within 14 days after birth, Section 4: Lost or stolen dogs(including burglary or Housebreaking), Section 5: Loss of show entry fees (max. limit Rs.250/-) when the dog registered with the Kennel club is unable to attend the show because of accident or disease, Section 6: Loss of value resultant upon an accident, Section 7: Liability for personal injury and damage to property (including animals, poultries or third parties) up to Rs.5000/-, Section 8: World Wide Transit Clause

When should I not worry about insurance so much?

If your pet is young and healthy or if the pet is not a very exotic animal, you may not want to insure it as pet insurance is quite nascent in India. Of course, as it grows older, the premium will increase. If you are ready to face – if your dog bites someone.

The number of pet owners is increasing rapidly. Moreover, pet owners and veterinarians can potentially be benefited if insurance companies come in the fray to financially help to take care of pets.

Between I don’t like Pets : )Please share your experience or questions about Pet Insurance in the comment section.

Hemant Beniwal is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER and his Company Ark Primary Advisors Pvt Ltd is registered as an Investment Adviser with SEBI. Hemant is also a member of the Financial Planning Association, U.S.A and registered as a life planner with Kinder Institute of Life Planning, U.S.A.
He started his Financial Planning Practice & TFL Guide Blog in 2009. "The Financial Literates" is a dream & mission to make Indians Financial Literate.

1 COMMENT

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